Emily's POV
I believed I had outdone myself.
The video from the kids' school had gone internet viral. I was told by my personal assistant Claire, who had also taken it upon herself to cancel every request to see me. The last thing I wanted to do was see anyone.
I drove my kids home from school that day, and I went into my room to console myself. With the door jammed, my back sagged against the bed. My chest felt stiff; I was hyperventilating. I reached out for my inhaler, hurriedly opening it, and sprayed it in my mouth. Over three times repeatedly before I found relief.
I took my phone and I watched the video again; this time it made me laugh. I laughed because it seemed like a joke—a very realistic joke—and tears streamed down my eyes. I wanted to text him, but it would be stupid of me.
Damn him… Damn.You
I hugged my knees as everything flashed in my mind.
Eight years ago, before I had met Henry, I had a simple life with my junior sister Joan. We owned a bar our parents left in our name, and we ran it without issues, and he was the son of a multi-millionaire who was known to be wild and adventurous.
Seven years ago, we met at my parents' bar, where I served drinks for the night, and it was like love at first sight. I fell head over heels for him; I could remember that night like it was only yesterday.
We hooked up and we fell in love, and in two months he engaged me, and in a matter of weeks we were together. I didn't protest because I was certain he was the man for me, and his money and status were only a bonus for sheer luck.
But then he confided in me about his family issue, he had told me the deal his father had set with him and his brother Chris and how he had to win his brother in a mindless competition. I was roped in between family wars, and I didn't even get to see their father before he left the country and cut off from both of them.
His father, the famous Hozier Musk, had two sons, Chris and Henry, and after a few years of raising them alone without their mother, he noticed his son had grown greedy for his money, mostly Henry, and he told both of them he would only give them his wealth if they could double a particular share in his company in a space of seven years. He promised to never check on their progress until the duration had come to an end.
Henry knew he could not do it; he failed the business and had no idea how to manage his share.
But I had more experience running a bar all my life than he ever had working closely with his father, but I took it upon myself to make sure we won. Fast forward seven years after that very day,I had flipped everything, and I had built multiple businesses at the expense of my mental health.
After the birth of my daughter Grace, I came down with eating disorders, it was the only way I could cope with the trauma in my mind and heart; it was the only way I could face my reality; my body changed, and I was constantly made to work and bring up new ideas every day without my feelings being validated.
Our sex life had dropped; I became a work wife alone; I felt neglected, but I had told him about it, but he was passive with my complaints; our sex life dropped to once a year, and after I got pregnant with Noah, my second child he didn't look my way again.
Noah was three now, and I could count how many times Henry stared at my body like a husband would stare at his wife, but I didn't complain instead, I worked on myself.
All this and many more flooded my mind as I stared at our wedding pictures. Henry was supposed to come back home today, so I waited for him at home to confront him about his cheating act.
He came back home late at night.
The kids were in the living room and I could hear them cheer for him as he came back, they asked him why he couldn't make it to their presentation at school, and I heard the lies he had told them. I heard the way he said it effortlessly and I tried to recall how many times he had lied since I met him.
I waited for him in our room in absolute darkness. And as he approached the room he turned on the light. At my sight, confusion registered on his face.
"Henry, welcome back." I said with a thin smile.
He rolled his eyes then walked to the closet. "Because I didn't reply to your message for three days. It doesn't mean you should make a fuss out of it; I knew you were busy; I didn't want to disturb you; you should be grateful," he said, then began to remove his clothes from his bag.
His audacity was uncanny.
"Oh, so kind of you," sarcasm coated every word I said as I stood from the chair.
"Yes, exactly very kind of me. Now I want you to help me do something. You know, dad is coming back in a month. I want to renovate the house, but I would be out of town for three weeks. I need you to take on the renovation process and get it done. Is that clear?"
If I hadn't seen those pictures of him, I would have worshiped his request like the faithful wife that I was and I would do it without questioning where he wanted to spend the next three weeks.
"Did you hear what I just said?" He asked again, but I remained quiet, so he turned and stared at me.
"Emily, I am talking to you; are you deaf?" Annoyance laced in his words as he yelled at me.
I smiled at him, then brought out my phone that I had used to take those pictures.
"Take a look at this," puzzled. He took the phone from my hands, and he stared at it. I had expected him to at least be shocked by the revelation, but instead he smiled dreamily at the image on the screen, then tapped a few times before he handed it to me; the picture was no longer there; he had deleted it.
"Yes, I got engaged; Bella must have sent it to you, but that's not the point here. I need the house renovated; get it done in at least two weeks," he said, then went back to the wardrobe. I watched him tuck in more clothes in his bag. It was obvious he wasn't sleeping at home tonight.
All my life, I had been belittled and taken for granted, but his actions were so disrespectful I felt like gouging his eyes out at the spot.
"I am done with the marriage," I said with spite.
He scoffed then turned to me, "You can pack your things and leave; you speak like I was going to stop you from leaving in the first place. If you think so, then you are out of your mind; I won't be on my knees begging you to stay."
"What?"
He smiled even wider now, with his hands wide spread apart.
"Look around; I have everything; I won! I would inherit everything not Chris, and you can't do anything about it, you should be happy I let your fat ass stay in my house, no man wants you; you look like a pig now. In a few months you would be like an elephant. You should be grateful to have a man like me, so if you want to go, you are free, but mind you, my kids won't go with you."
I fired back at him.
"I will take the kids; they are mine!" But he chuckled out loud without saying anything.
"I won't let you take my kids away from me, Henry; they are mine, not yours. I don't need your money, all I want is my kids."
He zipped his bags and wanted to leave but I was quick to stop him, he pushed forcefully to the floor, and my head hit the ground, the room spun around me, and just like that everything went blank.